Today is our Toby's 9th birthday! We will celebrate by giving him some new toys and balls and plenty of ear and belly rubs! We can't give him any new treats since he's still recovering from the big colitis attack of the past 3 weeks. Here's our baby as he appeared on the GRRNT website in 2004:
He was described as a very well behaved 6 month old boy according to a volunteer who met him at a Meet and Greet. He was given up by his family, according to the paperwork in his adoption folder, because the female believed her husband was going to kill the puppy. She put him in daycare for about a month before rescue had a place for him in the foster program. My DH and I suspect they actually gave him up because of his congential cataract which their vet discovered at his initial exam. They contacted the breeder for a refund and asked to keep him, then immediately contacted the rescue.

He was a wild child to put it mildly when we brought him home. Our poor Barkley! The ear biting was non stop!

But we did see some of this:

Through the years Toby developed another cataract so he underwent double cataract surgery in 2011. He also developed some issues with enlarged lymph nodes in his intestinal tract, a splenetic nodule and major digestive issues, deficiencies and sensitivities. He is most definitely a special needs dog so each good day is a day to celebrate.